A Good Landlord in the Tang Dynasty: Starting from the Village Chief

Chapter 527: Counterattack with an Army

On the banks of the Juma River before Grain Rain,

Li Yi stood barefoot on the ridges that the old ox had just plowed, bent down and buried the potato seed tubers covered in wood ash into the fertile soil.

The valley wind swept across the river, carrying away the sweltering heat from his body.

The Luo brothers, Luo Dafu and Luo Dagui, came over from the neighboring field. "Ah Lang, that cornfield has already been planted."

"I've finished planting these too."

With limited potatoes and corn, I could only plant these two small plots for now, and the rest of the land would be mainly used for planting millet and sorghum.

In the distance, on the river, are wooden rafts carrying provisions and equipment.

On both sides of the river, there were soldiers who had laid down their weapons and were busy farming in the military settlements, as well as disaster victims who had been organized.

"The millet will be ready for harvest in three months."

It's not yet Grain Rain time, so it's still a window of opportunity for sowing. Millet and sorghum can be planted, and spring wheat can also be planted.

However, in order to harvest as soon as possible, Li Yi chose to focus on millet, which is drought-resistant, barley-tolerant, and matures the fastest, and then millet.

Early-maturing varieties of millet can mature and be harvested in three months, while foxtail millet often takes more than four months.

Although millet yield is low,
But this is the frontier, and no one knows what the situation will be like in the next few months. Even a harvest in one month would be good.

After planting the last potato seed, Li Yi grabbed a handful of soil and held it in his hand.

This land is quite good. With some repairs to the irrigation canals, we can use the Juma River for irrigation. The Juma River is a river that flows year-round, and the water is spring water with excellent quality. Good water can produce good crops.

This kind of land is best suited for growing wheat, which can be planted in autumn and harvested in summer, resulting in high yields.

"It's a pity that we don't have enough manpower and livestock. Otherwise, Feihu County could have cultivated 400,000 to 500,000 mu of land, which would have been enough to be self-sufficient and even allow us to store grain for military needs."

The Weixian Basin and Lingqiu Basin are both larger than the Feihu Basin, and have more arable land.

The entire Weizhou region, with just these three basins, could easily support a permanent garrison of 20,000 to 30,000 troops, and also accommodate 30,000 to 50,000 households.

Luo Dagui said, "The most regrettable thing is that we didn't plant enough sweet potatoes and corn. It would be great if we planted more sweet potatoes, especially sweet potatoes and corn. They have such high yields. If we planted hundreds of thousands of acres, we wouldn't have to worry about military rations."

There's no need to go through the arduous process of transporting grain from the east of the Taihang Mountains anymore.

Da Fu smiled and said to his brother, "Even the noble estates in the capital region don't grow many auspicious crops like golden potatoes. How could we possibly have so many seeds sent here to plant?"

"Don't worry, it will happen gradually."

Potatoes and sweet potatoes are both coarse grains, and they are good for people to eat as a staple food, but they cannot replace staple foods.

In times of scarcity, a young adult could eat several large bowls of rice in one sitting, but if it was sweet potatoes, even eating several pounds wouldn't fill you up. Eating too much of this stuff not only caused more flatulence but also heartburn.

The potatoes are in a slightly better situation, but not much better.

On the other hand, although it is not as good as wheat, rice, or millet, it is still a thousand times better than grass roots, tree bark, and clay. It can truly save lives.

In recent years, Li Yizhuang has been working hard to promote planting. Every year, half of the potatoes, sweet potatoes, and corn harvested are sold for seed promotion, and the other half are used for their own continued planting.

Now, more and more are being planted, from the capital region to estates throughout the Guanzhong Plain, and even to estates in Longyou, Shannan, Henan, Hebei, Hedong, and Huainan.

Sooner or later, Li Yi's estate will be able to feed pigs with sweet potatoes and potatoes.

Flying Fox is still inside the Great Wall.
Still within that agricultural line,
This place is where the Hengshan, Taihang and Yanshan Mountains meet, surrounded by famous mountains and verdant peaks.

It is also the source of the Laishui and Yishui rivers, with clear springs winding around and a lively atmosphere.

"Mountains and rivers embrace each other, the landscape is beautiful and magnificent, and it also boasts a rich and profound history and culture. It connects to Daoma in the south and Zijing in the east, guards Youzhou in the interior and defends against Yunshuo in the exterior. It serves as the shoulder and back of two passes and connects the lifelines of two routes."
"To control the vital passage between Hebei and Shanxi, and to build a protective barrier for Yanyan!"

“What a great place.”

Although the Turks have treated this place like their backyard over the years, coming and going as they please, it has become sparsely populated and barren.

But now that Li Yi has arrived, he won't allow such a thing to happen again.

He wants to protect this pearl and develop this treasure land.

Not only did he establish military settlements, he also specially sent the steward of the Prince of Wu'an's mansion to organize and arrange for the Li family to buy land here, and at the same time, he rented land here to develop commercial settlements under the names of Qianjintang, Wujiguan and other business companies.

There is great potential here.

It is not only a strategically important location for military strategists, but also a good place for farming.

Late spring in April,

It is still the planting season.

Li Yi swiftly dispatched troops to Shanxi without consulting the Crown Prince, who was stationed in Puban.

And the results are encouraging.

The two armies from Youzhou and Dingzhou advanced with unstoppable momentum, sweeping across Weizhou and Beiyanzhou respectively.

Each one is faster and fiercer than the last.

In seven days, Li Yi captured Weizhou with only single-digit casualties, and even recruited and reorganized three thousand able-bodied soldiers.

Wang Junkuo's Youzhou troops took only a few days to capture Beiyan Prefecture, with casualties of just over a thousand. The main losses were during the attack on Jundu Pass. They ambushed the Beiyan Prefecture army at the Jigui River and seized Huairong City of Beiyan Prefecture in the process, with fewer than a hundred cavalry casualties.

In Feihu City, Li Yi issued an order to the 40,000 soldiers of the You and Ding armies to rest and recuperate, instructing them to strengthen their defenses while simultaneously developing agricultural settlements and transporting and storing grain.

Suddenly it just stopped.

Northern Yan Prefecture
Wang Junkuo was hunting at Jiming Mountain.
Wang Junkuo shot down a leaping deer with a single arrow, but there was no joy on his face.

He thought that after fighting desperately and capturing Jundu Pass in a day and night, coupled with the unexpected and swift capture of Beiyan Prefecture by Tudiji,
This should shock Li Yi and turn the tables on him.

Unexpectedly, Li Yi's side captured Weizhou before him, and even seized five passes, three counties, and three forts with almost no casualties.

They didn't need to fight so desperately; whether it was Baibi Pass or Daoma Pass, they could take them easily. They could even seize the crucial passage between the Wei and Dai regions, the Bottle Pass, without making a sound.

They directly kept the Turks outside the pass.

It should be noted that at this time, he received news that Jieli Khan had led as many as 150,000 cavalry into Daibei.

If Li Yi hadn't quietly taken down the bottle-shaped pass,

If the Khan of the Jieli and Gao Kaidao, who are so close at hand, were to learn of the fall of Weizhou, would they sit idly by? They would surely send a large army to attack. Could Li Yi withstand that?

But now,
Li Yi dispatched two generals, Liu Heita and Qin Wutong, to guard Pingxing Pass and Lingqiu City. With only four thousand soldiers in total, they were able to hold the pass against ten thousand men, leaving Jieli only able to sigh in despair.

Weizhou is very quiet.

"Have the men sent to Weizhou reported anything back? What is Li Yi doing?"

"The spy who infiltrated Weizhou reports that Li Yi has indeed been cultivating land recently. He's not only having his soldiers cultivate land, but also mobilizing the people to cultivate land, and even attracting merchants to cultivate land in Weizhou."
"Everywhere is being cleared and planted; everyone's very busy," a burly captain replied.

Wang Junkuo was very dissatisfied with this answer.

Farming?

The two prefectures of You and Ding sent 40,000 troops to come to Shanxi to farm.

"Is Li Yi afraid of the Turkic Khaganate, and dares not fight?"

Wang Jun, the governor of Beiyan Prefecture, said in surprise, "I think that although we have seized the territories of Weizhou and Beiyan Prefecture, it would be better to postpone it for now."

Now, the states of Xin and Dai are merely retreating to their cities to avoid the enemy's advance.

If we were to enter places like Daixin like this, we would be vulnerable to enemy attacks. Our supply lines are too long, and the Turkic troops are numerous and powerful, making us susceptible to attacks in the open..."

Wang Junkuo said to his sworn brother with dissatisfaction, "Why is my second brother speaking up for Li Yi?"

"Although Jieli has led an army of 150,000 southwards and sent troops to invade Ling and Liang, this is actually a good opportunity for us to send troops."

Especially in the Hedong region, Jieli's 150,000 troops had crossed Yanmen Pass and Loufan Pass, with some even penetrating deep into Taiyuan.
As a result, Yuan Junzhang's Shuoyun territory became empty.

"We have now captured Weidai and opened the passage into Yunshuo. We can advance along the Sanggan River, directly attacking Yunzhou and Shuozhou, and even launch a surprise attack on Dingxiang. Isn't this a perfect opportunity to achieve great things?"

"If Jieli's backyard catches fire, won't he have to withdraw his troops to rescue it? Wouldn't that mean we're just like that, besieging something and then trying to rescue it?"

"To relieve the siege of Wei by attacking Zhao," Wang Jun'e added.

“Yes, it’s a classic case of ‘besieging Wei to rescue Zhao.’ When Jieli withdrew his troops, the siege of Yanmen was lifted.” Wang Junkuo drew another arrow from his quiver and aimed it at a deer that was being chased in a panic.

An arrow shot out.

The deer let out a miserable cry and collapsed.

"It's laughable that the 40,000 elite troops of Youding didn't take the opportunity to attack the enemy, but instead stayed behind the mountain to farm."

Will crops yield a harvest immediately? Is it possible to wait half a year?
It would be better to just storm into Yunshuo, go to Dingxiang, and directly rob the Turks, Yuan Junzhang, and Yang Zhengdao.
They robbed cattle, sheep, and horses; they robbed people and their meat.

Wang Jun'e whispered to his sworn brother, "Brother, I heard that the Prince of Huaiyang has arrived in Youzhou and will be here soon."

Furthermore, even if the Prince of Huaiyang comes, our Youzhou army will still be under the command of Li Yi, the General Commander of the Hebei Expeditionary Force.

Until the Crown Prince gives us a direct order to act, we must all obey Li Yi.

Wang Junkuo felt somewhat irritated upon hearing the names of Li Daoxuan and Li Yi.

Not only could Li Yi suppress him, but soon Li Daoxuan would also suppress him.

The thought that he would soon have to listen to an eighteen-year-old prince made him furious.

After finally getting rid of Li Yuan, the position of Grand Steward was given to Li Daoxuan.

“Li Daoxuan won’t arrive for a while,” he gritted his teeth. “Second brother, if I were to order an attack on Yunzhou now, would you be willing to support me?”

Wang Jun said with concern, "Brother, you are openly defying Li Yi's military orders. I'm afraid many people will disagree with you, at least the governor of Yanzhou, Tu Diji, will not agree."

Wang Junkuo also thought of that old guy.
"If our scouts discover a Turkic army in the upper reaches of the Sanggan River, it would be reasonable for me to lead them out to search for and pursue them, wouldn't it?"

“Brother, our scouts have already gone out two hundred miles along the Sanggan River to scout, but they have not found any trace of the Turkic army.”

"Then I was wrong. At Yanling Fort, three hundred miles upstream of the Yan River, scouts discovered that the Turkic army was gathering and could invade our Northern Yan Prefecture or Wei Prefecture at any time."

We must immediately mobilize troops for defense. Surely it wouldn't be wrong for me to gather my forces and head there?"

Huai Rong City in Bei Yan Prefecture is where four rivers converge: the Gui River to the east, the Zhuo River to the southwest, the Sanggan River to the west, and the Yu Yan River to the northwest.

The Yu Yan River, also known as the Yang River due to its abundant water volume and vast flow, flows through Xuanhua and Zhangjiakou. It merges with the Sanggan River at Huairong in Beiyan Prefecture and is then called the Yongding River.

Starting from Beiyan Prefecture, one can follow the Sanggan River into the Datong Basin. This route is over 400 li from Beiyan Prefecture to Datong in Yunzhou. However, the section between Beiyan Prefecture and Yunzhou now belongs to Weizhou, which has no counties or townships and a small population.

Continuing northwest along the Yan River, one can also enter the Datong Basin via its tributary, the Nanyang River.

Upon hearing this, Wang Jun immediately understood his sworn brother's meaning: what scouts had discovered the Turkic army, what enemy troops were gathering at Yanling Fort.

Those are all fake.
My sworn brother wanted to use this as an excuse to send troops out under the pretext of an urgent military situation. His target was very clear: Yunzhou, and even Mayi and Dingxiang.

“Brother, this is too risky and unnecessary. If we are investigated afterward, this would be a serious crime of falsely reporting military information and disobeying military orders by sending troops without authorization.”

Wang Junkuo gritted his teeth, "I'm not reconciled. I can't let them control me."

My fate is in my own hands, not in the hands of heaven!

"If I capture Yunzhou and lift the siege of Daibei, would that be enough merit for me to become a Grand General? What if I capture Shuozhou, or launch a surprise attack on Dingxiang and attack the Khan's court? Would that be enough merit for me to become a Grand General?"

"If I am fortunate enough to capture Yang Zhengdao and Empress Xiao and retrieve the Imperial Seal, do you think I would also have a chance to be made a king?"

(End of this chapter)